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Article
Publication date: 18 June 2021

Ashish Trivedi, Ankur Chauhan and Surya Prakash Singh

Climate change and global warming pose a serious threat to the community as deglaciating environments trigger glacial lake outburst floods (GLOFs). The Sendai framework underpins…

Abstract

Purpose

Climate change and global warming pose a serious threat to the community as deglaciating environments trigger glacial lake outburst floods (GLOFs). The Sendai framework underpins the role of disaster risk reduction (DRR) for sustainable development, thereby calling for the development of GLOF hazard and risk assessment procedures. This study aims to delineate the enablers of GLOF risk and establish a contextual relationship between them.

Design/methodology/approach

The risk enablers are identified from the extant GLOF literature, and the experts from disaster management area are consulted to explore the underlying contextual relationship among them. An interpretive structural model is developed from the responses to analyze the contextual relationships among the risk enablers.

Findings

The interpretive structural modeling results manifest that seismic activity, temperature and precipitation events, and proximity are key drivers that trigger flash floods from the lakes and an effective assessment of these triggers may contribute significantly to GLOF risk mitigation.

Originality/value

The study models the complex relationship among the risk enablers for a glacial flood hazard that find commonality across all geographic contexts. The findings provide the practitioners of DRR useful insights into these factors and their subsequent impact on others, while conducting hazard assessment of glacial lakes that may contribute to the sustainable development of settlements lying downstream to glacial lakes.

Details

Management of Environmental Quality: An International Journal, vol. 32 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1477-7835

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 6 July 2012

Harsha Meenawat and Benjamin K. Sovacool

Bhutan is the smallest country in the Hindu Kush-Himalaya (HKH) region and one of the least developed countries in Asia. The most imminent threat to the country related to climate…

Abstract

Bhutan is the smallest country in the Hindu Kush-Himalaya (HKH) region and one of the least developed countries in Asia. The most imminent threat to the country related to climate change is that of glacial lake outburst floods (GLOF) – floods resulting from a breach in the moraine dam walls of glacial lakes that can release millions of cubic liters of water within seconds. Given the topography of the country and the stark differences in altitudes between the northern mountains and south-central plains, a GLOF event could devastate downstream communities.

The Royal Government of Bhutan (RGOB), with help from other countries and the Global Environment Facility (GEF), has undertaken several projects to prepare the country for GLOF events, recurring floods, and landslides. These projects are creating an adaptation model for the country, and based on the implementation of the pilot projects, the activities would be replicated in other parts of the country. The pilot projects are aimed at developing three broad types of resilience: infrastructural, institutional, and community resilience. The modeling of the glaciers and glacial lake system has provided the authorities with measures for structural mitigation that can help delay a major catastrophe, reduce risk, and increase infrastructural resilience. The use of modeling techniques, glacial surveys, and the development of hazard zoning maps is only one side of the coin – only half the story. It has been coupled with the development of institutional resilience to manage disaster events and community resilience to cope with and adapt to changing circumstances.

Three conclusions are established in this chapter. First, numerous climate change impacts are affecting the least developed countries in the region, and Bhutan is a pertinent example of countries and communities already at risk to a changing global climate. Second, it is important to choose the “right” models that can actually provide benefits to communities at risk. The projects in Bhutan demonstrate that adaptation activities work best when they blend different forms of resilience. Third, there are numerous barriers to successful implementation of adaptation projects. These barriers remind us that no matter how great the benefits of adaptation may be in specific communities, accomplishing those benefits in practice will take time, effort, and targeted public policy intervention.

Details

Climate Change Modeling For Local Adaptation In The Hindu Kush-Himalayan Region
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78052-487-0

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 22 September 2015

Pasang Yangjee Sherpa

The purpose of this paper is to show the complexity in dealing with climate change adaptation at the local level, and to show how social and institutional factors in addition to…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to show the complexity in dealing with climate change adaptation at the local level, and to show how social and institutional factors in addition to the ecological challenges contribute to that complexity.

Methodology/approach

This paper examines four institutional climate change activities and reveals how institutions currently address climate change, and how the Sherpas are involved in the process. It draws on three sorts of material: the interviews and observations conducted during my field research in 2010 and 2011; my personal experiences as a Sherpa woman; my recent participation in Sherpa face-to-face and online communities.

Findings

Organizing institutional climate change activities to draw international attention alone are not sufficient to address climate change adaptation issues. Communities at the local level cannot be assumed to be homogeneous entities. Institutional climate change adaptation efforts cannot assume that by reaching out to a few individuals in the region they will benefit the whole. Institutional activities have increased receptivity to scientific climate change knowledge, but it has also increased fear of an impending doom, and anger over the continuous discussion of climate change without concrete actions.

Research implications

Future research in the Everest region should include residents from all ethnic groups considering their historical contacts and interactions.

Originality/value

It is crucial that not only the Sherpa agency (or lack of agency) or understandings are examined but the institutional engagements and delivery are also assessed to practically, effectively, and sustainably address the challenges of climate change adaptation.

Details

Climate Change, Culture, and Economics: Anthropological Investigations
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78560-361-7

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 12 June 2023

Raju Chauhan, Sudeep Thakuri and Charles Pradhan

Nepal is exposed to multi-hazard risk and is highly prone to disasters such as earthquake, flood, landslide, and drought. The climate, topography, nature-based livelihood, and…

Abstract

Nepal is exposed to multi-hazard risk and is highly prone to disasters such as earthquake, flood, landslide, and drought. The climate, topography, nature-based livelihood, and weak economy and institutional capability to deal with such disasters put the country at frontline of the highly vulnerable countries in the world. Majority of the population of Nepal live in rural areas which are characterized by poorly developed infrastructures. Several disasters in such areas induce temporarily or permanently displacements of the people. Vulnerable communities, households, and individuals lack the capacity to withstand shocks, while more resilient communities are able to reduce the associated risks. Migration during disasters is itself an adaptive response which is both the opportunity and challenge for developing a resilient community. This chapter presents the trends and patterns of disaster-induced displacements in Nepal and explores how disaster-induced displacements could be an opportunity to build back better to enhance the resilience of the vulnerable communities. This chapter also highlights the existing institutions and disaster management framework of the national policies and strategies at the federal, provincial, and local levels in the light of disaster-induced displacement, and recommend actions that need to be taken to manage the risk of disaster-induced displacements and enhance resilient livelihoods in Nepal.

Details

Disaster, Displacement and Resilient Livelihoods: Perspectives from South Asia
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-80455-449-4

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 31 December 2010

Amir Nawaz Khan

Pakistan lies between latitudes 24° 37′ N and longitudes 62° 75′ E, covering a total land area of 796,096km2. The country shares its borders with Iran to the west, India in the…

Abstract

Pakistan lies between latitudes 24° 37′ N and longitudes 62° 75′ E, covering a total land area of 796,096km2. The country shares its borders with Iran to the west, India in the southeast, Afghanistan in the northwest, and China in the north. The Arabian Sea lies to its south (UNISDR, 2005; Khan, 2004d). The country has four provinces: the Punjab, the North West Frontier Province (NWFP), Sindh, Baluchistan, and two federally administrated territories – the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) and the Northern Areas. The Northern Areas have been recently given the status of Gilgit-Baltistan province. The structure of the provisional government is still in its formation stage. In addition, the territory of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) is under the administration of the government of Pakistan. Each province or territory is further divided into administrative units known as districts (GOP, 2003; Khan, 2004d).

Details

Climate Change Adaptation and Disaster Risk Reduction: An Asian Perspective
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-0-85724-485-7

Book part
Publication date: 31 December 2010

Jishnu Subedi

Three years ago, Naina Shahi's husband left their small village in rural Nepal to seek work in neighboring India, leaving her to bring up their three children alone. The dry…

Abstract

Three years ago, Naina Shahi's husband left their small village in rural Nepal to seek work in neighboring India, leaving her to bring up their three children alone. The dry winters and unpredictable monsoons Nepal has experienced in recent years had hit crop production on the couple's land plot in the foothills of the Himalayas, forcing them to look for other ways to feed their family (A report in September 4, 2009 issue of Republica; Cozens (2009)).

Details

Climate Change Adaptation and Disaster Risk Reduction: An Asian Perspective
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-0-85724-485-7

Article
Publication date: 12 December 2023

Muzamil Ahmad Rafiqii, M.A. Lone and M.A. Tantray

This study aims to provide a review for scour in complex rivers and streams with coarser bed material, steep longitudinal bed slopes and dynamic environments, in the interest of…

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to provide a review for scour in complex rivers and streams with coarser bed material, steep longitudinal bed slopes and dynamic environments, in the interest of the safety and the economy of hydraulic structures. The knowledge of scour in such geographical complexities is very crucial for a comprehensive understanding of scour failures and for establishing definitive criteria to bridge this major research gap.

Design/methodology/approach

The existing available literature shows significant work done in case of silt, sand and small sized coarser bed material but any substantial work for bed material of gravel size or above is lacking, resulting in a wide gap. Though some researchers have attempted to explore possibilities of refining the existing models by adding pier size, shape, sediment non-uniformity and armouring effects, which otherwise have been given a miss by the various researchers, including the pioneer in the field Lacey–Inglis (1930). But still, a rational model for scour estimation in such complex conditions for global use is yet to come. This is because all the parameters governing the scour have not been studied properly till date as is evident from the globally available literature and is witnessed in the field too, in recurrent failure of hydraulic structures especially bridges.

Findings

The researchers presume that the finer materials move only as a result of erosion. However, in actual field conditions, it has been observed that the large-sized stones also roll down and cause huge erosion along the river bed and damage the hydraulic structures, especially in the steep river/stream beds along hilly slopes. This fact has been overlooked in the models available globally and has been highlighted only in the current work in an attempt to recognize this major research gap. A study carried out on a number of streams globally and in Jammu and Kashmir, India also, has shown that in steep river and stream beds with bed material consisting of gravel size or greater than gravel, large scour holes ranging from 1 m to 5 m were created by furious floods, and due to other unknown forces along the channel path and near foundations of hydraulic structures.

Originality/value

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this work is purely original.

Details

World Journal of Engineering, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1708-5284

Keywords

Abstract

Details

Disaster Management in Sub-Saharan Africa: Policies, Institutions and Processes
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-80262-817-3

Book part
Publication date: 6 July 2012

Farida Azhar-Hewitt and Kenneth Hewitt

The paper looks at local experience and concerns in environmental disasters in the upper Indus Basin, widely thought to become more serious due to climate change. Emphasis is on…

Abstract

The paper looks at local experience and concerns in environmental disasters in the upper Indus Basin, widely thought to become more serious due to climate change. Emphasis is on the lives and livelihoods, responses, and concerns of those most affected. Several events and their contexts are examined. They highlight socially distributed and differentiated risks, losses, adaptive capacities, and available or absent protections. Cases at the village level underline problems relating to aspects of women's work and health; and how, while traditional practices are being enforced to ensure their continued seclusion and subordination, the villages and men's work are increasingly drawn into the modern economy and modernizing developments. Often these trends undermine traditional risk-averse practices but fail to provide alternatives. Some larger disasters reveal a disconnect between research and official responses, and expose the needs of local communities, whether in villages or mountain towns. This study examines how exposure and vulnerability to environmental dangers are a social construct. It leads to an argument for the “professional ear” in these contexts, finding ways to listen to those rarely heard, and translations that respect their concerns. Such work looks at conditions essentially invisible to climate models, and differing in character and approach. Arguably, it should come ahead of attempts to use model results to propose adaptive responses in these contexts.

Details

Climate Change Modeling For Local Adaptation In The Hindu Kush-Himalayan Region
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78052-487-0

Keywords

Content available
Book part
Publication date: 12 June 2023

Abstract

Details

Disaster, Displacement and Resilient Livelihoods: Perspectives from South Asia
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-80455-449-4

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